An Intellectual Pursuit
by b3cks
Summary: Megan and Larry's first "date." Fluffy vignette.


Disclaimer: I do not own Numb3rs. I only own this story's plot and a Numb3rs poster. Everything else belongs to someone else.

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Megan Reeves scanned the café looking for a place to sit. She found a table tucked in a corner. It was one of the few that was not littered with empty coffee mugs, open laptops, or lounging college students. She sat down with her back to the wall and gazed around.

_So this is where CalSci's young scholars spend their free time. _

Megan stifled a yawn. The last few days had been long. The latest case had her analyzing local papers, keeping a man from blowing up a toxic dump, and incriminating a powerful drug company. She was glad it was over. What she needed now was a hot shower and a long nap. Instead she was sitting in a crowded café.

Megan's watch said 12:36. Professor Fleinhardt's class would be over soon. She still could not believe that she had interrupted it. Larry had given her the information she needed to pin down the suspect and she wanted to thank him.

CalSci was on her way home, so she decided to stop by. When she did not find him in his office she went to the faculty secretary. Megan asked her where she could find Professor Fleindhardt. The secretary glared at her over thick bifocals. Megan was too tired to explain so she flashed her FBI badge. After a second of shocked silence, the secretary gave Megan a room number and directions.

Megan easily located the room. Without bothering to knock, she opened the door, walked in, and put on her best smile. Larry turned from the chalkboard with a confused look.

A giggle brought her attention to the left. Sixty students had stopped taking notes to stare at her.

Megan recovered quickly and said, "I didn't realize you were in class. I just came by to talk about the toxin case. We need your help to tie up some loose ends." Larry told his class to take a ten-minute break. Students filed out— some talking animatedly, others with glazed over looks, and some stealing curious glances.

As soon as the room emptied, Megan said, "I am so sorry to interrupt your class. I just wanted to thank you for your help the other day."

Larry smiled at her. "No, don't feel remorseful. I believe my students relish the opportunity to rest their cognitive functioning." He scratched his head and asked, "So what exactly did you come to say?"

"I came to let you know that we cracked the toxin case, thanks to your insight."

"Yes, Charles told me something about that. Are you really going to incriminate Greybridge Pharmaceuticals?"

"We'll leave that up to the lawyers. We did our job."

"How exactly did you end up chasing a rancher through the wilderness?"

"That's a long story." Megan said.

Students began to file back in. Larry looked at Megan, meeting her eyes. "Would you like to continue this discussion over lunch?"

"Sure." Megan could not think of a polite excuse.

So here she was. Sitting in a crowded café waiting for Dr. Larry Fleindhardt.

If the guys knew about this— she could see Don's face— she would never hear the end of it.

Just as she began to regret coming, Larry walked in. He wore a gray suit, an untucked dress shirt, and white sneakers. His black briefcase was slung over his shoulder and under his arm was a textbook. Megan caught the title: _Particle Physics Phenomenology_.

Larry sat down and dropped his books on the table.

"I'm sorry to you keep you waiting Agent Reeves. I was waylaid answering questions."

"Don't worry about that. I'm sorry for interrupting your class. And you can call me Megan. I only make criminals call me Agent Reeves"

Larry scratched his head. "Don't apologize, Megan. I believe your interruption was the highlight of my lecture."

Megan laughed. "I'm sure that's not true."

"Oh, you'd be surprised at the percentage of students who find my class boring. Last week a kid started snoring during my lecture on supersymmetry and grand unified theories." Larry said.

A waitress interrupted by asking for their orders.

After Megan ordered a salad and iced tea, the waitress looked to Larry.

"I'll have a turkey sandwich with Swiss cheese and mayonnaise on white bread, with a side of yogurt."

"Anything to drink?"

"Milk."

The waitress raised an eyebrow, then left.

Larry brought his attention back to Megan. "So you were going to tell me why you were chasing a rancher in Sibley."

Megan began to tell about her most recent case. As she was talking, she felt the tension from the past few days wear away. After Megan finished summarizing the McHugh case she asked Larry about what kind of books he read. Their discussion moved from books to classic cars, to physics. As the conversation progressed, Megan found she was enjoying herself.

The waitress came back, set down two plates, and made sure everything was all right, then walked off.

Larry eyed his plate with annoyance. Apparently the cook had not understood Larry's policy of only eating white food. Two parsley leaves rested beside the sandwich, throwing off the color scheme. As Larry gingerly picked off the offending vegetables, Megan laughed.

_What have I gotten myself into?_ She wondered.


End file.
